2008 Volume 17 Pages 105-114
The purpose of this study is to grasp and analyze the current situation and problems of the teacher evaluation system in Osaka. In order to analyze the characteristics and the causes of the problems, this study used qualitative data from semi-structured interviews with five principals of elementary and secondary schools.
The results reveal that the current problems have the following characteristics. First, it is difficult for teachers to objectify Performance Goals. Second, it is difficult for principals to assess teachers' abilities objectively and evaluate individual job performances fairly and impartially.
The main finding from the study is that the difficulties mentioned above with teacher evaluation are due to the characteristics of teachers' work and educational activity: uncertainty, borderlessness and collaboration. These characteristics make it difficult to gather accurate data which can be used as evidence of teachers' performance and evaluate individual job performances objectively.
The results suggest that today's problems of teacher evaluation arise from the characteristics of teachers' work and educational activity rather than the lack of evaluation capability among principals and teachers. In addition, an important point to emphasize is the fact that principals judged the value of Management by Objectives（MBO）separately from the appropriateness of the personnel evaluation system. Therefore, the rights and wrongs of a personnel evaluation system must be argued separately from the effects of MBO. It is necessary to adapt the evaluation method to the characteristics of teachers' work and develop our own theory of what teacher evaluation should be, as "teacher assessment theory".
